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Chelsea could “rival” Manchester United and Real Madrid for the signature of Crystal Palace midfielder Adam Wharton, according to reports.
The Daily Mail claim that the Blues have asked to be kept informed about the player’s situation, and a summer bid can’t be ruled out.
Fans on X have questioned whether Wharton would be a good addition to the squad:
Replacing Enzo with another snail
— Zapa MD (@gabyzico) March 31, 2026
Wharton is good but he’s literally thesame as Enzo… no legs
— Blaze CFC (@Blaze_ajo) March 31, 2026
What about Anderson?
— AT (@ineeds3ving) March 31, 2026
rather keep enzo than get a terrible worse oop player
Elliot or Sangare for me
— Chess🎵 (@Chess044) April 1, 2026
Why should we choose Wharton out of all these available midfielders?
Not making sense!
— Chelsea Heritage (@BluesHeritage) March 31, 2026
Outa all the creative midfielders in the world this is the guy they want to go for 😤😤😤
— N.E.D 🌟 (@sammy_dyk) March 31, 2026
Wharton’s asking price is lower than the alternatives
It is believed that Palace would likely offload the 22-year-old at the end of the season if they receive a fee in the region of £60m to £70m.
Players like Elliot Anderson and Sandro Tonali would cost much closer to £100m, which could make them less viable targets.
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Are Chelsea targeting a replacement for Enzo Fernandez?
The club’s vice-captain has been vocal in suggesting that he is open to leaving Stamford Bridge for Real Madrid over the past couple of weeks.
It is still not certain that Fernandez will be sold, as the Blues would command a high fee for the Argentinian international.
If he were to depart, though, Wharton is seemingly among the options being considered, although some supporters have rightly pointed out that he is not a like-for-like replacement.
The England international is usually deployed as a deep-lying midfielder, and he specialises in making progressive passes. However, he isn’t particularly mobile, and he rarely gets on the scoresheet.
Read more about the Chelsea First Team Squad for 2025/26 here